I usually have eight or ten road bikes around. That gives me a chance to try out a wide range of bar/brake lever combinations. I like to ride with my hands on the top of the brake levers. The bar/lever combination that is most comfortable is one where the bar "flows" directly into the top of the lever. Your hand can't feel where the bar and lever join together...they feel like a single flat surface.

If you have a bar where there is a gap or "dip" where the bar and lever meets, your hands tend to slide forward into that gap, and it can be uncomfortable. Sometimes moving the levers up an inch or so on the bars will reduce or remove that gap.

Rivendell sells a Nitto bar that is designed to provide that smooth "integration" of the bar and lever. Nitto products provide top quality at reasonable prices...some of my Nitto bars and stems are twenty years old, and I suspect will last me another twenty years.